The Well Project - donor sperm HIVhttp://www.thewellproject.org/tags/donor-sperm-hiv
enGetting Pregnant and HIVhttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p><img alt="" class="attr__field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]__ attr__field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]__ attr__format__default attr__typeof__foaf:Image image-style-none img__fid__307 img__view_mode__default media-image" src="http://thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/article_images/getting_pregnant.jpg" /></p>
<h5>Table of Contents</h5>
<ul><li><a href="#Interested">Interested in Having Children?</a></li>
<li><a href="#Options">Options for Safer Conception</a></li>
<li><a href="#Finding a Provider">Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</a></li>
</ul><h2><a id="Interested" name="Interested"></a>Interested in Having Children?</h2>
<p>Are you living with HIV (HIV+) and interested in having children? Are you HIV-negative and interested in having children with a partner who is living with HIV? Then know that you are not alone. The majority of women living with HIV are of child-bearing age. Advances in HIV treatment have greatly lowered the chances that a mother will pass HIV on to her baby (known as the rate of perinatal transmission, mother-to-child transmission, or vertical transmission). The chances of passing HIV from mother to baby can be as low as one in 100 when certain steps are taken (see below for more detail).</p>
<p>These same advances have made it much more possible for people living with HIV to live longer, healthier lives. They have also made it possible to reduce the chances of passing HIV to a partner when trying to have a child. The different choices or options for getting pregnant while reducing the chances of <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">transmitting HIV</a> are known as options for safer conception.</p>
<p>Given the number of effective options for safer conception, it is no surprise that women and men living with HIV are interested in having children. A 2009 study showed that almost seven in ten women living with HIV (ages 18 to 52) and based in Toronto, Canada wanted to give birth. The Women Living Positive Survey found that the same proportion of women living with HIV in the US considered family planning an important part of their HIV care.</p>
<p>Some of the major safer conception options that have become available recently include treatment as prevention (<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-treatment-prevention-tasp">TasP</a>) and pre-exposure prophylaxis (<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/prep-women">PrEP</a>). In 2011, an important study called HPTN 052 showed that HIV treatment could greatly reduce the chances of an adult living with HIV spreading HIV to another adult through sexual contact. In other words, if your partner living with HIV has an undetectable viral load, it can greatly reduce your chances of getting HIV from him or her; this is treatment acting as prevention. PrEP is for HIV-negative people and involves taking HIV drugs <strong>before</strong> being exposed to HIV to prevent infection.</p>
<h2><a id="Options" name="Options"></a>Options for Safer Conception</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. Safer conception options are a bit different depending on whether the members of the couple are seroconcordant (both people are living with HIV) or serodifferent (also known as serodiscordant, "mixed status couples" or "magnetic couples"). In serodifferent couples, one person is living with HIV while the other is not. Options for safer conception within serodifferent couples are based on which member of the couple is living with HIV – the man or the woman.</p>
<p>Please click the links below to see safer conception options that best suit your situation. The options are listed so that you can weigh the risks and benefits of each option, understand what might be the best for you, and prepare for discussions with your health care provider.</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-negative-man-serodiscordant">HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man (serodiscordant)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-man-and-hiv-negative-woman-serodiscordant">HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman (serodiscordant)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-woman-or-hiv-woman-same-sex-relationship">HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman in same-sex relationship</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-man-or-hiv-man-same-sex-relationship">HIV+ single man or HIV+ man in same-sex relationship</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-man">HIV+ woman and HIV+ man (seroconcordant)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-various-partner-options">View all the above options on one page</a></li>
</ul><p>It is important to note that the risk of a baby having HIV is based only on the HIV status of the mother. If you are a woman livig with HIV and interested in getting pregnant, please also see The Well Project's article <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/pregnancy-and-hiv">Pregnancy and HIV</a>, which provides important information about what to do before you become pregnant, care during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and preventing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to your baby.</p>
<h2><a id="Finding a Provider" name="Finding a Provider"></a>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h2>
<p>Despite the number of people living with HIV who want to get pregnant, there is sometimes limited access to information, options, and therapies. Many health care providers are not discussing family planning with their patients with HIV. Some do not have adequate information to share, while others openly discourage people living with HIV from having children. In the US, some laws prevent access to fertility treatments for those living with HIV, and many insurance plans do not cover these procedures. Despite the challenges you may face when wanting to get pregnant, it is possible for people living with HIV to have children.</p>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more information about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC%20article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united" target="_blank">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see The Well Project's article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group"> Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science's Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr%3D%28direct%29%7Cutmccn%3D%28direct%29%7Cutmcmd%3D%28none%29&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Thu, 28 May 2015 03:31:22 +0000The Well Project129 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: Various Partner Optionshttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-various-partner-options
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><ul><li><a href="#HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man">HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man (serodiscordant)</a></li>
<li><a href="#HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman">HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman (serodiscordant)</a></li>
<li><a href="#HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman">HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman in same-sex relationship</a></li>
<li><a href="#HIV+ single man or HIV+ man">HIV+ single man or HIV+ man in same-sex relationship</a></li>
<li><a href="#HIV+ woman and HIV+ man">HIV+ woman and HIV+ man (seroconcordant)</a></li>
</ul><h2><a id="HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man" name="HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man"></a>HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man (serodiscordant)</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV and an HIV-negative man seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Check for STDs</h3>
<p>Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant is a great first step to lower your chances of passing HIV between partners.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that the female partner living with HIV can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when she has no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. Recent studies of serodiscordant heterosexual ("straight") couples showed that HIV drugs were very effective in preventing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to the uninfected stable partner of someone with HIV.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low the viral load of the partner living with HIV – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to the uninfected partner with any type of unprotected sex. If you intend to have unprotected sex, it is important to tell your sexual partner that you are living with HIV. Exposing someone to HIV without telling them you are HIV+ can result in serious legal action being taken against you.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><h3><div class="media media-element-container media-default"><img style="height: 348px; width: 382px;" class="image-style-none media-element file-default image-style-none" typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/pictures/Normal_female_anatomy.jpeg" alt="" /></div></h3>
<h3>Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)</h3>
<p>HIV-negative members of serodiscordant or serodifferent couples can now consider using Viread (tenofovir) or Truvada (tenofovir/emtricitabine) as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, or <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/prep-women">PrEP</a>. PrEP involves taking HIV drugs <strong>before</strong> being exposed to HIV to prevent yourself from becoming infected. While having an undetectable viral load can greatly reduce your chances of getting or spreading HIV, you may not be able to be sure your partner is taking his or her medication. PrEP allows you to be in control of your own protection against HIV.</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">In July 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the daily use of Truvada as PrEP for sexually active adults at risk for HIV infection. It is recommended that PrEP be taken every day, not just right before you have sex. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) now recommends that serodiscordant couples consider using Truvada as PrEP as an additional tool to help reduce sexual transmission of HIV while trying to conceive.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">In 2014, the US Public Health Service released clinical practice guidelines suggesting that health care providers now discuss PrEP as one of several options for protecting HIV-negative partners in serodiscordant couples when they are interested in getting pregnant. Not all health care providers are comfortable or knowledgeable about prescribing PrEP. However, you can advocate for yourself by telling your health care provider that you are interested in taking PrEP and asking them to write you a prescription for it.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">For help finding providers that prescribe PrEP in the bay area of California and the state of New York, please see <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/prep-directory" target="_blank">HIVE's PrEP provider directory</a> and the <a href="http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/general/prep/docs/directory.pdf" target="_blank">New York State PrEP/PEP provider directory</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">We are not certain yet how useful PrEP is in further reducing the risk of spreading HIV to the uninfected partner when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed on HIV drugs. Some recent research has shown that PrEP may not give much added protective benefit when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed and unprotected sex is limited to the woman's fertile period (also called timed intercourse).</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Both Viread and Truvada, when used as PrEP for HIV-negative women, appear safe in early pregnancy. Information from the Partners PrEP study conducted among serodiscordant heterosexual couples in Africa showed that babies conceived when the mother was taking either Viread or Truvada did not experience negative effects on birth outcomes or infant growth. Women living with HIV have been taking these HIV drugs safely during pregnancy for many years to prevent their babies from getting HIV.</span></p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This is a cheap and simple way of getting pregnant. It involves having the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. After sex, pull the penis out of the vagina with the condom still on (you can also masturbate into a condom or cup, without vaginal sex). Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p>It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is more effective to use this method when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at almost any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's surrogate womb. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. If the surrogate is HIV-, there is zero risk of perinatal (mother-to-child) transmission of HIV. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's fertilized egg implanted in an HIV- surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to women living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a list of <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
<h2><a id="HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman" name="HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman"></a>HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman (serodiscordant)</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a man living with HIV and an HIV-negative woman seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and to prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Check for STDs and Analyze Semen</h3>
<p>Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant is a great first step to lower your chances of passing HIV between partners. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) also recommends semen analysis for men living with HIV before trying to get pregnant. Men living with HIV may have fertility problems more often than HIV-negative men. Making sure his sperm is fertile before you start trying to get pregnant can help you and your partner choose the best method for getting pregnant.</p>
<p>Analyzing semen for fertility (ability to achieve pregnancy) is a simple procedure that requires a urine specimen. However, it can sometimes be difficult to find a facility willing to analyze the semen of a man living with HIV (see below for help finding facilities and providers). In the US, this analysis is usually not covered by insurance and costs $100 to $250.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that the male partner living with HIV can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when he has no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. Recent studies of serodiscordant heterosexual ("straight") couples showed that HIV drugs were very effective in preventing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to the uninfected stable partner of someone with HIV.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low the viral load of the partner living with HIV – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to the uninfected partner with any type of unprotected sex. If you intend to have unprotected sex, it is important to tell your sexual partner that you are HIV+. Exposing someone to HIV without telling them you are living with HIV can result in serious legal action being taken against you.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank"><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Fertility Awareness Center</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank"><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Pinpointing Fertile Days</span></a></li>
</ul><p><img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)</h3>
<p>HIV-negative members of serodiscordant or serodifferent couples can now consider using Viread (tenofovir) or Truvada (tenofovir/emtricitabine) as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, or <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/prep-women">PrEP</a>. PrEP involves taking HIV drugs before being exposed to HIV to prevent yourself from becoming infected. While having an undetectable viral load can greatly reduce your chances of getting or spreading HIV, you may not be able to be sure your partner is taking his or her medication. PrEP allows you to be in control of your own protection against HIV.</p>
<p>In July 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the daily use of Truvada as PrEP for sexually active adults at risk for HIV infection. It is recommended that PrEP be taken every day, not just right before you have sex. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) now recommends that serodiscordant couples consider using Truvada as PrEP as an additional tool to help reduce sexual transmission of HIV while trying to conceive.</p>
<p>In 2014, the US Public Health Service released clinical practice guidelines suggesting that health care providers now discuss PrEP as one of several options for protecting HIV-negative partners in serodiscordant couples when they are interested in getting pregnant. Not all health care providers are comfortable or knowledgeable about prescribing PrEP. However, you can advocate for yourself by telling your health care provider that you are interested in taking PrEP and asking them to write you a prescription for it.</p>
<p>For help finding providers that prescribe PrEP in the bay area of California and the state of New York, please see <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/prep-directory" target="_blank">HIVE's PrEP provider directory</a> and the <a href="http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/general/prep/docs/directory.pdf" target="_blank">New York State PrEP/PEP provider directory</a>.</p>
<p>We are not certain yet how useful PrEP is in further reducing the risk of spreading HIV to the uninfected partner when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed on HIV drugs. Some recent research has shown that PrEP may not give much added protective benefit when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed and unprotected sex is limited to the woman's fertile period (also called timed intercourse).</p>
<p>Both Viread and Truvada, when used as PrEP for HIV-negative women, appear safe in early pregnancy. Information from the Partners PrEP study conducted among serodiscordant heterosexual couples in Africa showed that babies conceived when the mother was taking either Viread or Truvada did not experience negative effects on birth outcomes or infant growth. Women living with HIV have been taking these HIV drugs safely during pregnancy for many years to prevent their babies from getting HIV.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of HIV transmission. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Any of the types of assisted reproduction listed below can be used with washed sperm to get the HIV-negative woman pregnant.</p>
<h3><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">Assisted Reproduction</span></h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction that can be used with washed sperm:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Washed sperm is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The sperm is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Donor Sperm</h3>
<p>Donor sperm comes from a sperm bank or from someone you know who does not have HIV. Sperm donors to sperm banks are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. This involves no risk of <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to your partner.</p>
<p>Donor sperm is often used in an assisted reproductive technique called intra-vaginal insemination (IVI). In this procedure, sperm are placed deep inside the vagina by a health care provider. This is very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic. Donor sperm can also be used in any of the other assisted reproductive techniques listed above.</p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<p>If using sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV, have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p>It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is also more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a>(Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml " target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US <span style="line-height: 1.6em;">who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</span></p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178" target="_blank">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
<h2><a id="HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman" name="HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman"></a>HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman in same-sex relationship</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV who is either single or in a same-sex relationship, the conception options below will help you understand what might be the best for you and prepare you for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you can do is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will help you stay as healthy as possible, which will not only increase your chances of becoming pregnant but also lower your chances of passing HIV on to your baby.</p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen. It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<p>Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. Sperm banks collect and store samples from sperm donors. Donors are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<p>It is more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><p><img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's womb. This woman is often called a surrogate. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. If the surrogate is HIV-negative, there is zero risk of perinatal (mother-to-child) transmission of HIV. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's fertilized egg implanted in an HIV-negative surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to women living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children. In addition, adoption may be more difficult as a single woman or as a woman in a same-sex relationship given different states' and/or international adoption rules. Some states and countries do not allow single or same-sex parents to adopt. Even in those that allow it, there are often prejudices against single or same-sex parents and in favor of heterosexual married couples.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
<h2><a id="HIV+ single man or HIV+ man" name="HIV+ single man or HIV+ man"></a>HIV+ single man or HIV+ man in same-sex relationship</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a man living with HIV who is either single or in a same-sex relationship, the options below for having a child will help you understand what might be the best for you and prepare you for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Semen Analysis</h3>
<p>The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) recommends semen analysis for men living with HIV before trying to get pregnant. Men living with HIV may have fertility problems more often than HIV-negative men. Making sure his sperm is fertile before you start trying to get pregnant can help you and your partner choose the best method for getting pregnant.</p>
<p>Analyzing semen for fertility (ability to achieve pregnancy) is a simple procedure that requires a urine specimen. However, it can sometimes be difficult to find a facility willing to analyze the semen of a man living with HIV (see below for help finding facilities and providers). In the US, this analysis is usually not covered by insurance and costs $100 to $250.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will increase the likelihood that you will have healthy, virus-free semen if you choose to have your sperm washed and use a surrogate.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of transmitting HIV. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Any of the types of assisted reproduction listed below can be used with washed sperm to get a surrogate woman pregnant. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ man's washed sperm fertilize a donor's egg and be implanted in a surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option. Even if it is legal in your state, you may find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers unwilling to provide this service to men living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction that can be used with washed sperm:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Washed sperm is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The sperm is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in a woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to a woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children. In addition, adoption may be more difficult as a single man or as a man in a same-sex relationship given different states' and/or international adoption rules. Some states and countries do not allow single or same-sex parents to adopt. Even in those that allow it, there are often prejudices against single or same-sex parents and in favor of heterosexual married couples.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our info sheet on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
<h2><a id="HIV+ woman and HIV+ man" name="HIV+ woman and HIV+ man"></a>HIV+ woman and HIV+ man (seroconcordant)</h2>
<p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV and a man living with HIV seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and to prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you both can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will reduce the possibility of passing a different strain of HIV (one that may be stronger or more drug-resistant) to your partner. This is referred to as “superinfection.” As with serodiscordant partners, you can reduce the risk of passing HIV to your baby or partner by reducing your viral load before trying to become pregnant. Having an undetectable viral load lowers transmission risk, but does not get rid of it. Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant will also lower your chances of passing HIV between partners.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low someone's viral load – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to your partner with any type of unprotected sex.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><p>​<img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Home Insemination with Donor Sperm</h3>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is also more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. Sperm banks collect and store samples from sperm donors. Donors are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. This involves no risk of HIV transmission to your partner. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of HIV transmission. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Washed sperm can be used with the assisted reproductive techniques described below.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's surrogate womb. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's egg fertilized by an HIV+ man's washed sperm and implanted in an HIV-negative surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to people living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Egg Donation + Surrogacy</h3>
<p>As a woman living with HIV, you may choose to have your partner's sperm fertilize an HIV-negative woman's egg and have that same HIV-negative woman give birth to your child. In this situation, your male partner's sperm would need to be washed, then used with an assisted reproductive technique described above to get the HIV-negative surrogate pregnant.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the U.S or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" style="line-height: 1.6em;" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a><span style="line-height: 1.6em;"> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv-assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV. assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ptmtc" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PTMTC</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science’s Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: Various Partner Options" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 19:15:02 +0000The Well Project414 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-various-partner-options#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ woman and HIV+ manhttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-man
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV and a man living with HIV seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and to prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you both can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will reduce the possibility of passing a different strain of HIV (one that may be stronger or more drug-resistant) to your partner. This is referred to as “superinfection.” As with serodiscordant partners, you can reduce the risk of passing HIV to your baby or partner by reducing your viral load before trying to become pregnant. Having an undetectable viral load lowers transmission risk, but does not get rid of it. Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant will also lower your chances of passing HIV between partners.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low someone's viral load – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to your partner with any type of unprotected sex.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><p>​<img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Home Insemination with Donor Sperm</h3>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is also more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<p style="line-height: 20.7999992370605px;">Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. Sperm banks collect and store samples from sperm donors. Donors are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. This involves no risk of HIV transmission to your partner. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of HIV transmission. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Washed sperm can be used with the assisted reproductive techniques described below.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's surrogate womb. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's egg fertilized by an HIV+ man's washed sperm and implanted in an HIV-negative surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to people living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Egg Donation + Surrogacy</h3>
<p>As a woman living with HIV, you may choose to have your partner's sperm fertilize an HIV-negative woman's egg and have that same HIV-negative woman give birth to your child. In this situation, your male partner's sperm would need to be washed, then used with an assisted reproductive technique described above to get the HIV-negative surrogate pregnant.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the U.S or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" style="line-height: 1.6em;" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a><span style="line-height: 1.6em;"> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</span></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science’s Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ woman and HIV+ man" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 17:04:13 +0000The Well Project413 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-man#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman in same-sex relationshiphttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-woman-or-hiv-woman-same-sex-relationship
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV who is either single or in a same-sex relationship, the conception options below will help you understand what might be the best for you and prepare you for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you can do is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will help you stay as healthy as possible, which will not only increase your chances of becoming pregnant but also lower your chances of passing HIV on to your baby.</p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen. It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<p>Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. Sperm banks collect and store samples from sperm donors. Donors are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<p>It is more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><p><img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's womb. This woman is often called a surrogate. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. If the surrogate is HIV-negative, there is zero risk of perinatal (mother-to-child) transmission of HIV. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's fertilized egg implanted in an HIV-negative surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to women living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children. In addition, adoption may be more difficult as a single woman or as a woman in a same-sex relationship given different states' and/or international adoption rules. Some states and countries do not allow single or same-sex parents to adopt. Even in those that allow it, there are often prejudices against single or same-sex parents and in favor of heterosexual married couples.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science’s Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ single woman or HIV+ woman in same-sex relationship" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 16:34:45 +0000The Well Project412 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-woman-or-hiv-woman-same-sex-relationship#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ single man or HIV+ man in same-sex relationshiphttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-man-or-hiv-man-same-sex-relationship
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a man living with HIV who is either single or in a same-sex relationship, the options below for having a child will help you understand what might be the best for you and prepare you for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Semen Analysis</h3>
<p>The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) recommends semen analysis for men living with HIV before trying to get pregnant. Men living with HIV may have fertility problems more often than HIV-negative men. Making sure his sperm is fertile before you start trying to get pregnant can help you and your partner choose the best method for getting pregnant.</p>
<p>Analyzing semen for fertility (ability to achieve pregnancy) is a simple procedure that requires a urine specimen. However, it can sometimes be difficult to find a facility willing to analyze the semen of a man living with HIV (see below for help finding facilities and providers). In the US, this analysis is usually not covered by insurance and costs $100 to $250.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression</h3>
<p>One of the best things that you can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when you have no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. This will increase the likelihood that you will have healthy, virus-free semen if you choose to have your sperm washed and use a surrogate.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of transmitting HIV. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Any of the types of assisted reproduction listed below can be used with washed sperm to get a surrogate woman pregnant. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ man's washed sperm fertilize a donor's egg and be implanted in a surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option. Even if it is legal in your state, you may find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers unwilling to provide this service to men living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction that can be used with washed sperm:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Washed sperm is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The sperm is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in a woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to a woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children. In addition, adoption may be more difficult as a single man or as a man in a same-sex relationship given different states' and/or international adoption rules. Some states and countries do not allow single or same-sex parents to adopt. Even in those that allow it, there are often prejudices against single or same-sex parents and in favor of heterosexual married couples.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our info sheet on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv-assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV. assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science’s Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ single man or HIV+ man in same-sex relationship" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 16:08:47 +0000The Well Project411 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-single-man-or-hiv-man-same-sex-relationship#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman (serodiscordant)http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-man-and-hiv-negative-woman-serodiscordant
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a man living with HIV and an HIV-negative woman seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and to prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Check for STDs and Analyze Semen</h3>
<p>Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant is a great first step to lower your chances of passing HIV between partners. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) also recommends semen analysis for men living with HIV before trying to get pregnant. Men living with HIV may have fertility problems more often than HIV-negative men. Making sure his sperm is fertile before you start trying to get pregnant can help you and your partner choose the best method for getting pregnant.</p>
<p>Analyzing semen for fertility (ability to achieve pregnancy) is a simple procedure that requires a urine specimen. However, it can sometimes be difficult to find a facility willing to analyze the semen of a man living with HIV (see below for help finding facilities and providers). In the US, this analysis is usually not covered by insurance and costs $100 to $250.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that the male partner living with HIV can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when he has no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. Recent studies of serodiscordant heterosexual ("straight") couples showed that HIV drugs were very effective in preventing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to the uninfected stable partner of someone with HIV.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low the viral load of the partner living with HIV – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to the uninfected partner with any type of unprotected sex. If you intend to have unprotected sex, it is important to tell your sexual partner that you are living with HIV. Exposing someone to HIV without telling them you are HIV+ can result in serious legal action being taken against you.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank"><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Fertility Awareness Center</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank"><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Pinpointing Fertile Days</span></a></li>
</ul><p><img alt="" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/Normal_female_anatomy.jpg" style="cursor:default; height:348px; width:382px" /></p>
<h3>Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)</h3>
<p>HIV-negative members of serodiscordant or serodifferent couples can now consider using Viread (tenofovir) or Truvada (tenofovir/emtricitabine) as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, or <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/prep-women">PrEP</a>. PrEP involves taking HIV drugs before being exposed to HIV to prevent yourself from becoming infected. While having an undetectable viral load can greatly reduce your chances of getting or spreading HIV, you may not be able to be sure your partner is taking his or her medication. PrEP allows you to be in control of your own protection against HIV.</p>
<p>In July 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the daily use of Truvada as PrEP for sexually active adults at risk for HIV infection. It is recommended that PrEP be taken every day, not just right before you have sex. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) now recommends that serodiscordant couples consider using Truvada as PrEP as an additional tool to help reduce sexual transmission of HIV while trying to conceive.</p>
<p>In 2014, the US Public Health Service released clinical practice guidelines suggesting that health care providers now discuss PrEP as one of several options for protecting HIV-negative partners in serodiscordant couples when they are interested in getting pregnant. Not all health care providers are comfortable or knowledgeable about prescribing PrEP. However, you can advocate for yourself by telling your health care provider that you are interested in taking PrEP and asking them to write you a prescription for it.</p>
<p>For help finding providers that prescribe PrEP in the bay area of California and the state of New York, please see <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/prep-directory" target="_blank">HIVE's PrEP provider directory</a> and the <a href="http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/general/prep/docs/directory.pdf" target="_blank">New York State PrEP/PEP provider directory</a>.</p>
<p>We are not certain yet how useful PrEP is in further reducing the risk of spreading HIV to the uninfected partner when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed on HIV drugs. Some recent research has shown that PrEP may not give much added protective benefit when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed and unprotected sex is limited to the woman's fertile period (also called timed intercourse).</p>
<p>Both Viread and Truvada, when used as PrEP for HIV-negative women, appear safe in early pregnancy. Information from the Partners PrEP study conducted among serodiscordant heterosexual couples in Africa showed that babies conceived when the mother was taking either Viread or Truvada did not experience negative effects on birth outcomes or infant growth. Women living with HIV have been taking these HIV drugs safely during pregnancy for many years to prevent their babies from getting HIV.</p>
<h3>Sperm Washing</h3>
<p>Sperm washing refers to a process in which sperm is separated from seminal fluid (semen = sperm + seminal fluid). Since HIV exists in seminal fluid but not in sperm, 'washing' the sperm clean of the seminal fluid lowers the risk of HIV transmission. See "<a href="http://www.sementesting.org/the-science/" target="_blank">Understanding the Science</a>" for more information. Any of the types of assisted reproduction listed below can be used with washed sperm to get the HIV-negative woman pregnant.</p>
<h3><span style="line-height: 1.2em;">Assisted Reproduction</span></h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction that can be used with washed sperm:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Washed sperm is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The sperm is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Donor Sperm</h3>
<p>Donor sperm comes from a sperm bank or from someone you know who does not have HIV. Sperm donors to sperm banks are most often anonymous, and they are tested for fertility and diseases to make sure the sperm is safe and able to result in pregnancy. This involves no risk of <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to your partner.</p>
<p>Donor sperm is often used in an assisted reproductive technique called intra-vaginal insemination (IVI). In this procedure, sperm are placed deep inside the vagina by a health care provider. This is very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic. Donor sperm can also be used in any of the other assisted reproductive techniques listed above.</p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This involves using donor sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV. Depending on the state in which you live, you may be able to use donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination. If using donor sperm from a sperm bank for home insemination is possible in your state, ask your sperm bank for instructions on how to use the sperm at home.</p>
<p>If using sperm from someone you know who does not have HIV, have the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p>It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is also more effective to use home insemination when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at most any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with HIV adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a>(Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml " target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">list of friendly family planning providers</a> in the US <span style="line-height: 1.6em;">who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</span></p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178" target="_blank">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science's Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ man and HIV-negative woman (serodiscordant)" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 15:44:27 +0000The Well Project410 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-man-and-hiv-negative-woman-serodiscordant#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man (serodiscordant)http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-negative-man-serodiscordant
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>There are several different options for reducing the chances of passing on HIV while trying to get pregnant. If you are a woman living with HIV and an HIV-negative man seeking information on getting pregnant, the options below will help you understand what might be the best for you, and prepare for discussions with your health care provider. (For other options, you can return to the main "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>" page.)</p>
<h3>Check for STDs</h3>
<p>Treating any <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/sexually-transmitted-diseases-stds">sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)</a> before trying to get pregnant is a great first step to lower your chances of passing HIV between partners.</p>
<h3>Viral Suppression of Partner Living with HIV</h3>
<p>One of the best things that the female partner living with HIV can do in this situation is take HIV drugs regularly and maintain a suppressed viral load, even when she has no symptoms and a relatively healthy immune system. Recent studies of serodiscordant heterosexual ("straight") couples showed that HIV drugs were very effective in preventing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/hiv-transmission">HIV transmission</a> to the uninfected stable partner of someone with HIV.</p>
<h3>Unprotected Sex</h3>
<p>It is important to remember that no matter how low the viral load of the partner living with HIV – even if it is undetectable – there is always some risk of passing HIV to the uninfected partner with any type of unprotected sex. If you intend to have unprotected sex, it is important to tell your sexual partner that you are living with HIV. Exposing someone to HIV without telling them you are HIV+ can result in serious legal action being taken against you.</p>
<p>If you choose this method, the risk of passing on HIV is lower if you only have unprotected sex when the woman is ovulating (when she is most likely to get pregnant). Ovulation occurs when an egg is released from the woman's ovary and usually happens about two weeks before a woman starts her menstrual period. Insemination during the "fertile window" – usually one to two days before ovulation and one day after ovulation – has a greater chance of success. For more information on understanding and tracking your fertility, visit:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.fertaware.com/" target="_blank">Fertility Awareness Center</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.parents.com/getting-pregnant/ovulation/fertile-days/pinpointing-fertile-days/" target="_blank">Pinpointing Fertile Days</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HomeinseminationforHIVfemalediscordantcouple.pdf" target="_blank">Home Insemination for HIV+ Female Discordant Couple (HIVE)</a></li>
</ul><h3><div class="media media-element-container media-default"><img style="height: 348px; width: 382px;" class="image-style-none media-element file-default image-style-none" typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://www.thewellproject.org/sites/default/files/pictures/Normal_female_anatomy.jpeg" alt="" /></div></h3>
<h3>Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)</h3>
<p>HIV-negative members of serodiscordant or serodifferent couples can now consider using Viread (tenofovir) or Truvada (tenofovir/emtricitabine) as Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, or <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/prep-women">PrEP</a>. PrEP involves taking HIV drugs <strong>before</strong> being exposed to HIV to prevent yourself from becoming infected. While having an undetectable viral load can greatly reduce your chances of getting or spreading HIV, you may not be able to be sure your partner is taking his or her medication. PrEP allows you to be in control of your own protection against HIV.</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">In July 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the daily use of Truvada as PrEP for sexually active adults at risk for HIV infection. It is recommended that PrEP be taken every day, not just right before you have sex. The US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) now recommends that serodiscordant couples consider using Truvada as PrEP as an additional tool to help reduce sexual transmission of HIV while trying to conceive.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">In 2014, the US Public Health Service released clinical practice guidelines suggesting that health care providers now discuss PrEP as one of several options for protecting HIV-negative partners in serodiscordant couples when they are interested in getting pregnant. Not all health care providers are comfortable or knowledgeable about prescribing PrEP. However, you can advocate for yourself by telling your health care provider that you are interested in taking PrEP and asking them to write you a prescription for it.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">For help finding providers that prescribe PrEP in the bay area of California and the state of New York, please see <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/prep-directory" target="_blank">HIVE's PrEP provider directory</a> and the <a href="http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/general/prep/docs/directory.pdf" target="_blank">New York State PrEP/PEP provider directory</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">We are not certain yet how useful PrEP is in further reducing the risk of spreading HIV to the uninfected partner when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed on HIV drugs. Some recent research has shown that PrEP may not give much added protective benefit when the partner living with HIV is already virally suppressed and unprotected sex is limited to the woman's fertile period (also called timed intercourse).</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Both Viread and Truvada, when used as PrEP for HIV-negative women, appear safe in early pregnancy. Information from the Partners PrEP study conducted among serodiscordant heterosexual couples in Africa showed that babies conceived when the mother was taking either Viread or Truvada did not experience negative effects on birth outcomes or infant growth. Women living with HIV have been taking these HIV drugs safely during pregnancy for many years to prevent their babies from getting HIV.</span></p>
<h3>Home Insemination</h3>
<p>This is a cheap and simple way of getting pregnant. It involves having the man ejaculate (cum) into a clean cup or condom. If using a condom, be sure to use a condom without spermicide. After sex, pull the penis out of the vagina with the condom still on (you can also masturbate into a condom or cup, without vaginal sex). Then, using a syringe (without a needle) or baster, you suck up the semen and insert the syringe or baster deep inside the vagina. Once the syringe or baster is deep inside the vagina, you squeeze out and deposit the semen.</p>
<p>It is often recommended that the woman lie down for 20 minutes after inserting the semen to improve fertility. It is more effective to use this method when a woman is fertile, or when she is ovulating. You can get non-needle syringes at almost any pharmacy as they are commonly used to give medicines to babies. Your HIV provider may also have some to give you.</p>
<h3>Assisted Reproduction</h3>
<p>This means that a sperm fertilizes an egg with the help of a medical technique or therapy. Assisted reproduction (sometimes called "assisted reproductive technology" or ART) is useful when the future parent(s) require help to prevent HIV transmission between partners, are using donor sperm, or are having difficulty getting pregnant at home because of fertility issues. Unfortunately, few facilities offer assisted reproduction to patients living with HIV, and few health insurance plans cover it. There are several types of assisted reproduction:</p>
<ul><li>Intra-vaginal insemination (IVI): Very similar to home insemination, only done in a clinic.</li>
<li>Intra-uterine insemination (IUI): Semen (sperm and seminal fluid) is drawn up into a narrow tube, which is then inserted through the cervix into the uterus (womb). The semen is deposited in the uterus, where fertilization of the egg can occur.</li>
<li>In-vitro fertilization (IVF): The woman takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from the ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put back in the woman's uterus.</li>
<li>Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI): This is a specific type of IVF in which a sperm is injected directly into an egg using a very thin needle. When a fertilized egg occurs, it is returned to the woman's uterus. This method is used when a man's sperm do not swim well or are not normally shaped.</li>
</ul><h3>Egg Donation</h3>
<p>This involves using IVF and eggs donated by another woman, who is checked for fertility and diseases. The woman who is donating eggs takes fertility drugs to help her prepare eggs (also called ripening her eggs). When eggs are ready (or ripe), they are removed from her ovary and put in a dish with sperm. Once there is a fertilized egg (embryo), it is put in your womb (uterus). Although this method uses the eggs of a woman who is HIV-negative, it is still important for you to take HIV drugs to prevent passing HIV on to your child during pregnancy or childbirth.</p>
<h3>Surrogacy</h3>
<p>Your egg is fertilized using IVF or ICSI, then transferred to another woman's surrogate womb. The surrogate carries and gives birth to your child. If the surrogate is HIV-, there is zero risk of perinatal (mother-to-child) transmission of HIV. Although it is biologically possible to have an HIV+ woman's fertilized egg implanted in an HIV- surrogate, you may encounter several legal or regulatory challenges to this option for getting pregnant. Even if this option is legal in your state, it may be difficult to find fertility clinics or surrogacy centers willing to provide this service to women living with HIV.</p>
<h3>Adoption</h3>
<p>Offering a permanent family to a parentless child may be an option if having biologic offspring is not a good choice for you. Adoptions can be done within the US or internationally. Some agencies and/or countries may have prejudices against people living with adopting children.</p>
<h3>Finding a Provider and Building a Support Network</h3>
<p>When choosing to have a child as a person living with HIV, it is important to be an advocate for yourself and your future child. Finding the right health care provider who is supportive of your plans to get pregnant is a big first step! A friendly health care provider can talk with you about many issues around pregnancy and having children: which conception option is right for you, appropriate HIV treatments for you and/or your partner, whether to <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/disclosure-and-hiv">disclose</a> your HIV status to others (including other providers, your child's pediatrician, additional friends and family), and how to handle the <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> and fear around living with HIV and being pregnant.</p>
<p>When The Well Project's Founder, Dawn Averitt, asked providers about getting pregnant over 14 years ago, she faced some very negative reactions before she found a wonderful provider who supported her desire to have children. While her original experience in getting pregnant and having two healthy HIV-negative daughters is discussed in the three articles listed below, Dawn recently posted a blog about <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a>. Here's part of what she said:</p>
<p class="rteindent1"><em>My own children are now 11 and nearly 13, and in most urban settings, no one raises an eyebrow when they say "my mom has HIV." I wish I could say this was universal, but it isn't. Many health care providers are not familiar enough with the information about HIV to know that HIV-positive women can choose to become pregnant, and that, with access to good prenatal care and HIV treatment, their risk of transmitting HIV to their infants is less than two percent. This is why it is so important to find a health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy – they are definitely out there! Dawn Averitt, <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/a-girl-like-me/aglm-blogs/getting-pregnant-while-living-hiv-2015">Getting Pregnant while Living with HIV in 2015</a></em></p>
<p>For more about Dawn's experience in trying to get pregnant, please explore the links below:</p>
<ul><li><a href="http://www.sophiaforum.net/resources/HealthJANAC article.pdf" target="_blank">HIV and Pregnancy: Tough Choices and the Right to Choose</a> (Journal of the Associate of Nurses in AIDS Care, Vol. 13, No. 3, May/June 2002, 11-12 courtesy of the Sophia Forum)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/news-press/breaking-taboos-pregnancy-planning-and-fertility-issues-people-living-hivaids-united">Breaking the Taboos: Pregnancy Planning and Fertility Issues for PLWHAs in the US</a> (transcript from presentation at AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, courtesy of TheBody.com)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.poz.com/articles/183_1014.shtml" target="_blank">Baby Love</a> (POZ magazine, December 2002)</li>
</ul><p>The Well Project has started a list of <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">friendly family planning providers</a> in the US who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. Even though the providers listed might not be in your area or town, it might be worth a call or email to answer any questions you might have or for possible referrals. Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can also contact Shannon Weber (<a href="mailto:Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) at <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> for referrals to local providers.</p>
<p>Given the existing <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/stigma-and-discrimination-against-women-living-hiv">stigma</a> against people living with HIV having children, you may encounter judgmental responses from others. Therefore, it is important that you build a strong <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/node/178">support network</a> of loving family, friends, and providers. Your support network can help you make good decisions and get through the negative, sometimes disheartening moments. If you do not have a good number of friends and family who support you, you may consider starting your own support group; for more information, see our article on <a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/starting-support-group">Starting a Support Group</a>.</p>
<p>Ultimately, you get to choose when and whether to have children. You deserve to be treated with respect and given access to the information necessary to make an informed decision and plan for your future.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv-assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV. assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/mixed-status" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">mixed status</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/for-you">HIVE: A Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (in English and en Español)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us">HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positively-negative.squarespace.com/">Positively Negative: Love, Pregnancy, and Science's Surprising Victory over HIV</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/HTML/3/perinatal-guidelines/153/reproductive-options-for-hiv-concordant-and-serodiscordant-couples">Preconception Counseling and Care for HIV-Infected Women of Childbearing Age (NIH)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP-appears-safe-for-use-in-conception-but-may-not-be-necessary-if-partner-is-taking-treatment/page/2692408/">PrEP Appears Safe for Use in Conception, but May Not Be Necessary if Partner is Taking Treatment (AIDSmap)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (US VA)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.cdc.gov/art/index.html">Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (CDC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.prepwatch.org/">PrEP Watch</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/fertility-awareness-4217.htm?__utma=1.113260800.1384387270.1384387270.1384387270.1&amp;__utmb=1.9.7.1384387270&amp;__utmc=1&amp;__utmx=-&amp;__utmz=1.1384387270.1.1.utmcsr&amp;__utmv=-&amp;__utmk=181983655">Fertility Awareness-Based Methods (Planned Parenthood)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/basal-temperature-chart.pdf">Basal Body Temperature Chart (womenshealth.gov)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://womenandhiv.org/francois-xavier">The HIV and Preconception Care Toolkit (ACOG)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/as-mixed-status-hiv-couples-weigh-risks-more-choose-to-conceive-the-old-fashioned-way/2014/04/24/8c8b11a4-b9d4-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html">As mixed-status HIV couples weigh risks, more choose to conceive the old-fashioned way (The Washington Post)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://positivelyuk.org/pregnancy/">From Pregnancy to Baby and Beyond (PositivelyUK)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/clinician-consultation/perinatal-hiv-aids/">FOR PROVIDERS - Clinician Consultation Center: Perinatal HIV/AIDS (UCSF; 1-888-448-8765)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://nccc.ucsf.edu/2014/09/29/introducing-the-ccc-prepline/">FOR PROVIDERS – Clinician Consultation Center: PrEP line (UCSF; 1-855-448-7737)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV.</div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: HIV+ woman and HIV-negative man (serodiscordant)" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 14:58:11 +0000The Well Project409 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-hiv-woman-and-hiv-negative-man-serodiscordant#commentsGetting Pregnant and HIV: List of HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers in the UShttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>Below is a list of friendly family planning providers who are informed about pregnancy planning for people living with HIV. If you are interested in adding your name, organization, or clinic to this resource list, please email us at <a href="mailto:info@thewellproject.org">info@thewellproject.org</a>.</p>
<p>Sometimes it can be difficult to find a friendly health care provider who is knowledgeable about HIV and pregnancy. Some health care providers simply are not aware of the wealth of information about pregnancy planning for their patients living with HIV (HIV+). Perhaps even more challenging, though, are the judgmental attitudes that many health care providers still hold. Thankfully, the situation is changing and there are now reliable resources for finding the information and services you need.</p>
<p>Go back to "<a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a>".</p>
<p><a href="http://sementesting.org/" target="_blank">Bedford Research Foundation<br />
SPAR (Special Program of Assisted Reproduction)</a> <br />
Somerville, MA<br />
Phone: 617-623-7447<br />
Email: <a href="mailto:lab@bedfordresearch.org">lab@bedfordresearch.org</a> <br />
Provides sperm washing for HIV+ men and works with several collaborating fertility clinics around the world<br />
<br /><a href="http://memphischoices.org/home " target="_blank">Choices: Memphis Center for Reproductive Health</a> <br />
Memphis, TN<br />
Phone: 901-274-3550 or 800-843-9895 (toll free)<br />
Offers integrated reproductive health and HIV-related care<br />
<br /><a href="http://www.columbiafertility.org/" target="_blank">Columbia Doctors for Women's Reproductive Care</a> <br />
Manhattan and Weschester, NY<br />
Phone: 646-756-8294<br />
Email: <a href="mailto:mdk2132@columbia.edu">mdk2132@columbia.edu</a> <br />
Call or email to request information packet on HIV-related fertility services</p>
<p><a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/" target="_blank">HIVE</a> – a Hub of Positive Reproductive and Sexual Health (formerly BAPAC)<br />
San Francisco General Hospital<br />
1001 Potrero Avenue, 6D-33<br />
San Francisco, CA 94110<br />
Phone: 415-206-8919<br />
Fax: 415-206-3626<br />
Provides comprehensive preconception counseling and prenatal care to women and families infected and affected by HIV; HIVE can also provide provider referrals <br />
<br /><a href="http://www.laurelfertility.com/" target="_blank">Laurel Fertility Care</a> <br />
San Francisco, Modesto, and Fresno, CA<br />
Phone: 1-888-442-3888 (toll free)<br />
Email: <a href="mailto:info@laurelfertility.com">info@laurelfertility.com</a> <br />
Provides fertility services</p>
<p><a href="http://www.drexelmedicine.org/patient-services/infectious-diseases/services/hiv-care/" target="_blank">Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice</a><br />
Philadelphia, PA<br />
Phone: 215-762-6826 (Erika Aaron)<br />
Offers integrated reproductive health, preconception counseling, prenatal care, PrEP, and other HIV-related care</p>
<h2>Referrals to Providers</h2>
<p>Pregnant women living with HIV, their exposed infants, and HIV-affected couples seeking safer conception options can contact Shannon Weber (<a href="http://Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu" target="_blank">Shannon.Weber@ucsf.edu</a>) for referrals to local providers.</p>
<h2>Getting PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis)</h2>
<p>Not all health care providers are comfortable or knowledgeable about prescribing PrEP. For help finding providers that prescribe PrEP in the bay area of California and the state of New York, please see <a href="http://www.hiveonline.org/prep-directory" target="_blank">HIVE's PrEP provider directory</a> and the <a href="http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/general/prep/docs/directory.pdf" target="_blank">New York State PrEP/PEP provider directory</a>.</p>
</div></div></div><section class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above view-mode-rss"><h2 class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</h2><ul class="field-items"><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-and-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Getting pregnant and HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/getting-pregnant-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">getting pregnant HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-want-baby" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ want a baby</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodiscordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodiscordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/seroconcordant-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">seroconcordant pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/home-insemination-hiv-assisted-reproduction-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">home insemination HIV. assisted reproduction HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-vaginal-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-vaginal insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivi-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-uterine-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-uterine insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/iui-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IUI HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/vitro-fertilization-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">In-vitro fertilization HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/ivf-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">IVF HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/intra-cytoplasmic-sperm-insemination-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Intra-cytoplasmic sperm insemination HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/donor-sperm-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">donor sperm HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/surrogacy-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">surrogacy HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/egg-donation-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">egg donation HIV</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/adoption-hiv" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">adoption HIV</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pregnant-aids" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">pregnant AIDS</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-woman-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ woman pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/hiv-fertility" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV fertility</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hiv-have-children" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">HIV+ have children</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/magnetic-couples" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">magnetic couples</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/pmtct" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PMTCT</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/serodifferent-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">serodifferent pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/prep-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">PrEP pregnant</a></li><li class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pre-exposure-prophylaxis-pregnant" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Pre-exposure prophylaxis pregnant</a></li></ul></section><div class="field field-name-field-additional-resources field-type-link-field field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv">Getting Pregnant and HIV</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://www.thebody.com/content/69274/having-a-baby-when-you-have-hiv.html">Having a Baby When You Have HIV (The Body)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.sfaf.org/hiv-info/hot-topics/beta/2011-beta-winterspring-fertility.pdf">Becoming a Positive Parent: Reproductive Options for People with HIV (SFAF)</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="http://hiv.ucsf.edu/care/perinatal/videores.html">Video resources (BAPAC)</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="http://www.hiv.va.gov/patient/faqs/conceiving-with-mixed-HIV-status-couple.asp">Can a couple in which one person is HIV positive conceive a baby without the uninfected partner becoming infected? (VA.gov)</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-resource-list-intro field-type-text-long field-label-hidden view-mode-rss"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Select the links below for additional material related to getting pregnant and HIV. </div></div></div><span property="dc:title" content="Getting Pregnant and HIV: List of HIV-Friendly Reproductive Services and Providers in the US" class="rdf-meta element-hidden"></span>Wed, 27 May 2015 14:00:00 +0000The Well Project408 at http://www.thewellproject.orghttp://www.thewellproject.org/hiv-information/getting-pregnant-and-hiv-list-hiv-friendly-reproductive-services-and-providers-us#comments